You have seen the Facebook “Like” widgets on every blog, business page and piece of content on the Internet. Someone somewhere wants you to make them feel accepted, if only virtually. The hidden message behind the “Like” button is businesses not only want you to like a product or service, they want you to come back and spend your money. They want a way to create brand loyalty in a marketplace where, in order to stand out, you must stand out from your competition.

1. Create a Compelling Facebook Account for Your Business

Facebook by far has the largest reach of any social media outlet. Within the coming months, more than 1 billion users will share, talk and communicate across the social network. How do you cash in on this piece of the pie? You must create a compelling Facebook page solely for your business. Remember this is business, not personal. Do not intermingle your personal account and a fan page. You want to the selling point of your page to be your brand, not yourself. Ensure you have strict attention to detail regarding the administration of your page. Utilize privacy features such as editing friend’s lists, turning off photo tagging and photo sharing and content sharing. You have worked hard for your brand, don’t just give it away.

2. Acknowledge Your Socioeconomic Base

A question you should ask yourself on a constant basis is, “Who are my customers?” If you don’t know anything about who you are marketing to, you will never have the ability to convert a “like” into increased traffic and eventually improved sales and profit. A successful campaign includes the customers that you market to on a regular basis. When you establish the base, you then branch out to seek additional customers. You can’t reach to new customers first in the event this deters your loyal base.

3. Create an Offer to Drive Traffic

Everyone likes something free. Typically, when a business offers free items, traffic increases, but only for a small amount of time. Free offers are not a sustainable business tactic. In order to drive traffic and convert “likes,” businesses must create offers that drive traffic back to the site and get people talking about the brand. The goal is for customers to inform friends and drive additional traffic.

4. Promotion and Fan Engagement

When businesses want to convert “likes,” a key factor needed to drive success is promotion. Although “likes” are associated with Facebook, businesses must have a presence across all social media avenues as well as traditional venues. Consider using Twitter, Google + and LinkedIn on the social media side. In-person visits to business conventions are an ideal networking tool, plus it allows customers to put a face to a business.

When customers put a face to a business, they become more engaged in a brand. Fan engagement is vital, simply because they are the ones driving your bottom line. Always remember to interact with fans. Ask their opinions, and ask them to join the conversation. When they feel as if they have a say, they are more likely to embrace the brand.

5. Strong Follow-up

Any campaign can work once, but can you repeat the same results? The results of your success should be repeated, not the campaign itself. Consider email marketing as an option to create intriguing content to push people toward your Facebook pages. When a business repeats the same campaign multiple times, you are telling the customer you no longer are fresh and relevant. Select a timeframe and change your campaign according to plan. When you make the changes, you ensure an increase in engagement which results in a higher “like” conversion rate.

Now that you have your strategy in place, what are you going to do with it? Don’t accept anything less than you expect. Would you rather have 10,000 “likes” or 1,000 repeat customers that talk about your brand and bring in new business? Remember, anyone on the Internet can “like” something. Your goal is to convert those likes into brand loyalty and eventually repeat business.

1 Comment on 5 Strategies to Turn “Likes” into Conversions

I hope people read your advice carefully. The last step is the most important – ALWAYS do a detailed follow up. I stress the DETAILED part. Take the time to go through it with your client properly.Matt @ macro photography´s last blog post ..Macro photography in the Botanical Gardens